Abstract
This paper concerns automotive parts located underneath the engine and in particular the engine oil pan. Classically made of stamped steel or cast aluminum, new developments have allowed the manufacture oil pans with polyamide 66 reinforced by 35% weight of short glass fiber. However, polyamides have some limitations and the most significant is their response to localized impact loading. The nature of the impact considered here is of a typical stone collected from the road and projected into the oil pan. Low velocity impact investigations were carried out using a gas gun and drop weight tower. The study shows that the design of the oil pan has a significant contribution in the shock absorption. In addition to the material properties, the geometry and the ribbing both cleverly combined, increase the impact resistance of the component significantly. Areas of oil pan design improvement have been identified and conclusions drawn.
Highlights
A main concern in the automotive industry is vehicle weight reduction so as to help reduce fuel consumption and emission levels
Thermoplastic composites used in automotive applications can be short fiber-reinforced thermoplastic, or long fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites
When the force between the oil pan and the impactor returns to null, it is the end of contact time and the end of penetration
Summary
A main concern in the automotive industry is vehicle weight reduction so as to help reduce fuel consumption and emission levels. Research has shown that composites are capable of absorbing energy and dissipating it by various fracture and elastic processes when subjected to a low velocity impact [8] The ability of these materials to absorb energy elastically depends on the mechanical properties of the matrix and fibers, the interfacial strength, the velocity of impact and the size of the component. For the effective use of polymer matrix composites in higher performance applications, it is important to understand the cause of damage formation under low velocity impact conditions as well as the potential for improvement of damage resistance characteristics of composites. We appreciate that material properties of the oil pan will evolve during the product life cycle because of working conditions and ageing effects In this respect, many parameters involved are considered in this initial study while others have been fixed to reduce the complexity of the problem. Only a single impact scenario is presented; multiple impacts scenario will be considered for further tests
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